Brighton Restaurant Guide

2022 Review: “Creative and delicious” – this pleasing Lanes spot, say fans, “takes Indian food to new heights”. One or two reporters this year, though, craved more spice here.

“Brighton’s most popular restaurant” (our survey agrees – it’s the most commented-on in town): “small plates rule – and the choices are definitely out-of-the-ordinary” – at Pamela & Ben McKellar’s venue in the Lanes, where “most of the seating is counter-style, which is great but arguably limits its appeal (you have to be very lucky to get one of the tables if you want a six, for example)”. For £50 per person, you can avoid having to choose and go for the chef’s short tasting menu, which is “really good, and a good representation of the kitchen”. Notwithstanding its popularity and virtues, though, ratings overall here are only in the middle ground and one or two more sceptical reporters “expected more given its reputation… I’m not sure exactly what it is attempting”.

“For a large chain, they still do pretty much unbeatable Mexican fusion fare”, say fans of these “busy and atmospheric” street-food cafés, now with 11 London branches and three others around the UK. That said, there are also some niggles in feedback; and the sentiment is widespread that – though “still enjoyable” – the food can seem “a little mass-produced”. Even so, practically all diners still consider them “dependable for a quick, cheap ’n’ cheerful bite”. Top Tip – the new, 150-cover Paddington branch is their first opening in six years and puts a focus on sustainability and a menu including some larger sharing plates (e.g. grilled Achiote Seabass, Lamb Barbacoa and Chimichurri Cauliflower).

2023 Review: “A bustling Italian pizzeria with huge helpings of food like Mama makes” in the heart of the Lanes. “Comforting and joyous” – it provides “value-for-money pastas and pizzas and is ideal for outings with young family members”.

2021 Review: “A shabby-chic bistro with pleasant staff and interesting small plates” – fish-centric – plus “natural wines to complement the seasonal organic food”.

“Exceptional seafood, ultra-fresh off the boat” is the order of the day at this classic oyster bar down “one of the cutest winding alleys in the Lanes” – “every Brightonian has either been in this place or stared longingly through the window” since it opened almost 20 years ago, and it’s “definitely a must-stop for visitors to the town”. “The USP is that you can choose your fish from a board showing the day’s catches. When it’s gone, it’s gone (but it’s annoying when the board isn’t kept up-to-date – we missed out on the Dover sole!)”. There’s a newer branch in the Rotunda on the Promenade (see also). Top Menu Tip – “the seafood risotto”.

The “perfect place for a celebratory meal” – a decade-old Lanes favourite by GBM winner Michael Bremner where “it’s great sitting at the pass watching the chefs at work”, though half the seating is also allocated elsewhere if that’s too much drama; you can choose to make a meal of the small plates, or sample more of the “interesting” and “flavourful” dishes on the “amazing tasting menu” (“where as much attention is paid to the vegetarian options as the meat and fish”). As feedback on the venue was thin and included (unusually) the odd off-report this year, we‘ve left it unrated.

This Lanes institution of almost 45 years’ standing has a national reputation for its “creative” vegetarian and vegan cooking, which is both “good quality” and “very good value for money”. There’s a “wide choice of dishes” inspired by European and Asian cuisines – and a dessert menu that pulls no punches. These days it has an offshoot in Hove, Botanique.

2022 Review: Opened just before Christmas 2019, a brightly decorated establishment where everything is cooked over open fire in the central open kitchen. It’s from the Food for Friends team with chefs Holly Taylor and Toby Geneen. Limited initial feedback, but ratings are strong and reports are of a “carnivore’s delight”.

This “little piece of Spain in the Lanes” is a “go-to place” for fans of rib-sticking Hispanic fare – “people assume that ‘tapas’ means tiny little bits (when they often are actually thinking of pintxos), but this is hearty, meaty, gravy-drenched Spanish comfort food, and it is always a winner”. (“It was the first tapas restaurant I ever went to more than 25 years ago, and is still the best” – “staff always shake regulars by the hand and also respond beautifully to us bringing others for the first time. Thumbs-up!”).

“You just cannot beat” the “brilliantly cooked, juicy/sloppy burgers”, say fans of this indie group – “they’re worth the dirty fingers afterwards”. Founded by Joe Grossman in 2012, it now has seven outlets (plus two concessions) in London and another in Brighton, and after negotiating a tricky patch on home turf opened its first international branch in Dubai last year.

Nothing but praise this year for this “cosy, romantic” French bistro in the Lanes. The “solid menu with some very interesting specials” is “done to a high but far from pretentious standard” and “staff are all most attentive” too. Add in the “very reasonable prices” and it might just be “the best ‘proper’ French restaurant in Brighton” (and one visiting Londoner opines “200% better than its near-ish neighbour Bistro du Vin)”.

2023 Review: “Not a restaurant… rather a tiny room with some bar stools along the wall”. Fans say “it’s a ‘must-try’ experience for all lovers of honest, tasty cuisine! The burgers are juicy, and full of flavour from the quality of the meat to the seasonings”.

“Another wonderful small-plates restaurant in Brighton” – this three-year-old hit from the Black Rock group wins nothing but praise for its “wonderful service”, “fun interior and super food” (much wood-fired, and sometimes same-y, but with some “truly memorable” standouts). The stable now spans The Salt Room and The Coal Shed (the latter exported to London) plus a newer Italian, Tutto.